How to ensure security in a stadium so that the only action-packed moments happen on the pitch, not in the stands?
This precise question was the focus of the international conference "Security at Sports Events: Police Response and Cooperation," which took place on May 7 and 8 this year at the BTA Daugava Stadium. The event brought together more than 200 participants, both in person and remotely, from six countries. The goal of the conference was to strengthen the capacity of the involved institutions to identify risks, coordinate responses, and ensure effective cooperation in the field of sports event security.
As Arturs Smilga, Deputy Chief of the Central Public Order Police Department and Chief of the Resource and Crisis Management Department of the State Police, noted during the opening of the conference: "If the police officers remain unnoticed during the event, that is the best compliment, because it means everything went smoothly."
Over the course of two days:
🔹 experts from the United Kingdom, Sweden, Lithuania, Estonia, Switzerland, and Latvia shared their experience regarding international police cooperation and ensuring security at sports events;
🔹 Adrian Dinca, Senior Stadium and Security Manager at UEFA, presented UEFA’s approach to security;
🔹 13 different crisis situations were played out in real-time simulations at the BTA Daugava Stadium — ranging from uncontrolled crowd flow management to the de-escalation of physical conflicts.
The conference was attended by representatives from the State Police, the State Police College, the Ministry of Education and Science, the Riga Municipal Police, the University of Latvia, the "Apeirons" association, Turiba University, as well as private security companies and international experts.
Such training sessions are essential to ensure spectator safety at sports events and to foster effective cooperation among all involved services.
The conference was implemented within the framework of the European Union's Internal Security Fund co-financed project No. VP/IDF/2024/5 "Strengthening the Response Mobility and Counter-Terrorism Capabilities of the State Police by Creating a Practical Training Center" (01.04.2024.–31.12.2029.).
